The GO Community Development Corporation manages a shoe closet at its Center to provide children and adults with shoes and socks. The Center’s typical funding sources are not currently available due to the financial constraints of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Funding through this Cause Connector project will support the Center in expanding the shoe closet to include boots, coats, and other winter attire. The project will help ensure that more children, adults, and people who do not have stable housing have access to essential winter items.

The GO Community Development Corporation is a Black-led organization: over 50% of the board is Black and the executive director identifies as Black. The organization also serves the Black community.

Support for Black-led organizations and projects serving the Black community is especially critical right now. As a result of the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, there are many needs facing communities throughout the country and in Appalachian Ohio, with Black communities among the most impacted.

Individuals in Appalachian Ohio experience poverty at higher rates than individuals in other parts of the state. This means that more people are likely to struggle to meet their basic needs in our communities.

These needs have only grown greater amid the COVID-19 pandemic. This makes projects like this one all the more critical.

By meeting the basic needs of individuals, we can ultimately strengthen whole communities.